


Let It Rain

by LePapillonRose



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Angst, Gen, Kasamatsu is a good captain, Kise having a good cry on Kasamatsu, Kise needs some love, M/M, can be read romantically or platonically, post Touou game of course
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-19
Updated: 2018-08-19
Packaged: 2019-06-29 16:10:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15732885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LePapillonRose/pseuds/LePapillonRose
Summary: But Kasamatsu notices the little things, like the way Kise's expression darkens when he thinks no one is looking, like clouds looming over the sun before a storm.





	Let It Rain

Though he would never admit it, Kasamatsu has had an eye on Kise for the entirety of practice. Their blonde ace acts normal—or at least, his brand of normal, showing off his moves and posing for his fans and laughing with his teammates. But Kasamatsu notices the little things, like the way he shifts all his weight to his left leg, the way his entire body is strung with tension, the way his expression darkens when he thinks no one is looking, like clouds over the sun before a storm. Moriyama would laugh and call him a mother hen, but Kasamatsu can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong and, curse his conscious, he can’t turn a blind eye to it either. 

Takeuchi blows the whistle at the end of practice, and Kasamatsu takes his time debriefing the coach and checking their equipment. Kise always takes the longest in the showers, but Kasamatsu has stopped complaining since his expensive body wash and hair products help the locker room stink a little less like sweaty teenage boys. For once, he’s thankful for Kise’s meticulous attention to hygiene.

Counting and recounting the number of basketballs in the ball cart quickly grows tedious, and Kasamatsu makes his way into the locker room. The water isn’t running anymore, and the aroma of vanilla and exotic flowers he can’t name wafts through the air. The room is empty except for Kise, who is standing in front of his open locker and listlessly staring into its depths. Kasamatsu leans against the wall next to it, folding his arms.

“Oi, what’s up with you?”

It’s not his best delivery and it gets him a poor reaction. Kise flashes him one of those smiles he despises, huge and gaudy and smothered in overcompensating sunshine. “Nothing at all, senpai! What do you—”

“ _Kise,_ ” Kasamatsu says, with all the force and authority of an eldest brother and captain behind it, “Don’t lie to me.”

They both know that Kise is incapable of doing so anyway, and the façade cracks soon enough. Kise sits on the bench and leans back against the lockers, still smiling but in a decidedly more rueful manner. 

“Do you ever feel like you’re not good enough?”

Instantly, Kasamatsu knows what this is about, and it frustrates him. How many times has he and the team reassured Kise that he had done well and the loss wasn’t his fault? He doesn’t understand how someone so arrogant can be so insecure at the same time.

However, looking down at this lost, fragile shell of Kise, Kasamatsu reigns it all in. He knows what it’s like to be where Kise is now, plummeting down a deep dark chasm with seemingly no end in sight. He also knows that it’s a personal battle and he can’t singlehandedly pull Kise out from it, but he’ll be damned him if he doesn’t do his duty as a captain, as a senpai, as a _friend,_ and try. 

“I have, and it feels like shit.” Kasamatsu sits down next to Kise; he supposes honesty is the best remedy. “It feels like you’ll never be where you want to be and you’ll keep letting people down. But it does get better. It helps to keep people who care about you close, and it helps to remember that you tried your best. If you gave it your all, what is there really to regret?” 

Kise is quiet for far too long and Kasamatsu glances at him. The blonde ace is looking at him with wide eyes, as if he hadn’t expected a response at all. Perhaps he’s put two and two together; Kasamatsu knows Kise is nowhere near as stupid as he makes himself out to be. 

“Do you care about me, senpai?”

Of course Kise would ask something like this. Kasamatsu does his best not to scowl, because this is vulnerable Kise and not whiny Kise. “Obviously, idiot. Why else would I be here?”

Kise doesn’t tease him. Instead, his face softens into a smile, a _real_ one that could probably knock out his entire fanbase and then some, and he leans down to rest his head against Kasamatsu’s shoulder. The scent of vanilla and fancy flowers grows stronger, and Kasamatsu is now conscious of the fact that he’s still sweaty and hasn’t showered. Kise doesn’t seem to mind it. “What’re you doing?”

“Keeping people who care close,” Kise has the gall to respond, and the captain would definitely shove him off for that cheesy answer if not for the fact that he can hear the tears in Kise’s voice. With a sigh, Kasamatsu lifts his other arm and places his hand on still damp blonde hair.

“I’m here, Kise.”

That opens the floodgates and Kise begins to cry, the same ugly desperate cry that Kasamatsu wishes he weren’t so acquainted with because no matter how much Kise pisses him off, it always lances through his chest. Now, all he can do is wait, stroking his hair and hoping Kise will take his words to heart.

**Author's Note:**

> This idea just randomly hit me today and I typed out this quick thing. I love fluffy angst lol. I hope you guys liked it anyway! Feel free to comment~


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